July 3, 2008

The first shopping mall in the UK

For many of us the sight of a giant shopping mall is a thing of the late twentieth century, yes there have been streets of shops for centuries but nothing that could resemble a shopping centre at all.

But archaeologists in Wales have found what they think could be the first shopping centre in the UK. Dating back to the Roman times, the shopping centre which has been found in Monmouthshire, South Wales is being estimated as being over eighteen hundred years old.

The remains are believed to be that of an old Roman town, which would have been somewhat wealthy as there are remains of really nice villas that have mosaic floors and painted walls. These villas surround the area which has been described as being rows of shops.

What happens next is going to be years of digging with small hand tools to see if there are any artefacts that can show what life could have been like in 3^rd century England.

Source [Telegraph]